As I am sitting in the middle of a sugar cane field in Cambodia, I am completely in awe of God in every way. If you saw my view right now, you would probably guess that I’m going to write about how great His creation is. And even though His creation is pretty spectacular that is not what God is impressing on my heart. It is His love.
When was the last time you did something without expecting anything in return? Even if it is not for tangible rewards, everything we do is for a profit. At the very least, we want a pat on the back or praise for our hard work. But this month, my team started construction on a house. We were building a house for a homeless lady. She had nothing. We didn’t expect anything in return from her. Our tools were limited and the space was small. When there was limited work to do, the other two girls and I would round up the children in the area. We sang songs, danced, and did the hokey-pokey. These children had no money to give. Some would come half clothed. But we did not expect anything from them.
I say all that to say that I feel that for the most part the Church is missing the mark. So many times we look at someone’s class, color, clothing, or what they can offer before we love them. We try to complicate the Gospel. Jesus didn’t preach people to heaven. Through loving them, he opened up the door to share His word.
1 Corinthians 13: 2 says, “And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.”
If we could grab ahold of God’s love and share it freely without reservations, judgements, or agendas this world would see restoration.
Do you remember the children and the lady we helped build a house for? Well they did have something to give. That precious lady would bring small snacks for us everyday. When she had little, she would give so much. And those children would pour out their heart to sing and dance with us. They even walked to our English class the last few days. They loved us as well as we loved them.
